Eyes Closed, Mind Free
by freckledpeaches
Summary: Sakura has been living alone in the shadows since she felt that somehow, her and Sasuke's relationship had no meaning. And ever since, Sasuke has hated her with pure venom.. for what? SasuKarin, 1-sided NaruSaku, 1-sided SasuSaku.
1. Not Meant To Be

**Story: **Eyes Closed, Mind Free

**Genre: **Romance, Angst

**Rating: **Teen

**Summary: **Summary: Sakura has been living alone in the shadows since she felt that somehow, her and Sasuke's relationship had no meaning. And ever since, Sasuke has hated her with pure venom.. for what?

A Naruto Story

**Disclaimer:**Naruto, in all rights, belongs to Masashi Kimoto and its other respectful owners.

**Note to Readers: **This is my very first Naruto story. Reading many of these stories on deeply inspired me to write some of my own. I welcome logical criticism, and compliments. Note that the characters (especially Sasuke) might be OOC at times to fit my story.

Here are some notes to help you understand who's saying what.

_I like ice cream _- refers to someone's thoughts, and in Sakura's case, her Inner.

I like ice cream - narration or speech.

A line above and under _I like ice cream - _a flashback.

Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter One: Not Meant To Be**

_It's not wor__th it, Sakura…_

I knew it wasn't. But, I still wanted him. To feel loved, and wanted again.

I took nimble steps to the park of Konoha. It was a lovely place to replenish oneself and allow them to think about the past. On the wet grass lay an array of wooden benches. I proceeded to take a seat on one. I mimicked a Sasuke style pose, slouching forward, fingers woven into each other, nose covered by the long pale palms of my hands. I wanted to break free from the situation I was in… but I knew better than that. It wasn't always that easy to run away.

* * *

___"Sakura, you're annoying," he said, not bothering to keep eye contact. _

_"I know Sasuke, I know." I wanted to curse him, and scold him for not understanding others, but I couldn't bring myself to do so._

_"Then why do you still talk to me? Leave me alone. You're useless to me now. You're __**nothing.**" He smirked at my deeply hurt face, and vanished under the moonlight._

_Tears cascaded down my cheeks, and I couldn't bear to hide my feelings anymore. He didn't understand why I had to do it... But I knew, as I fell on my knees choking sobs, that he would never understand. I knew that even before I tried to explain, he wouldn't understand anyway. So why had it hurt nonetheless?_

_I didn't bother to heal my scraped knees from banging onto the pavement. _

_Here I was, crying again for the millionth time in my life. _

_Just like Sasuke said... I'm **annoying.**_

* * *

I'm grateful that Naruto finally beat Sasuke, and brought him back. It wasn't easy though. We went through years and years of training together until we were both 17. The reason Sasuke probably agreed in the end was because Itachi was dead.

But Karin... she just had to come following after Sasuke like a dog.

* * *

_I was overflood with happiness. Sasuke, finally back? It was too good to be true. But it was. _

_I wanted to hug Sasuke, and say, "Welcome Back!" like nothing ever happened. But there was Karin, hugging him instead, and saying "Don't worry Sasuke, I'll always be with you, even in Konoha! We'll be together forever!" Those two lines revolted me. I didn't look at him. Instead, I consoled Naruto and gave him the respect he deserved for bringing his best friend back._

_"Sakura, I fufilled your promise! Now go on a date with me!" he laughed. I could tell he was joking. We've been best friends ever since we were 15. I hugged him instead, thanking him. But I knew this wasn't only for me. It was for him, too. _

_"Now you only have one goal left, neh, Naruto?" _

_"Yeah, Sakura-chan! To be the Hokage! Dattebayo!"_

_"Naruto. Sakura," murmured Sasuke. It wasn't a question, or an invitation for a hug, but merely a statement that meant so much to me and Naruto._

* * *

I sensed a presence, or rather, two. I darted my eyes, to check who was disrupting the peaceful park at this hour.

My eyes caught on to two people, walking side by side. The moonlight paled their vivid features, and at once I recognized the pair. Sasuke Uchiha and his new item, Karin.

He was talking to her is if he actually cared for her. I _knew _better, but my inner self still prodded me with unwanted thoughts.

_Oh Sakura, Sasuke loves and cares about Karin._

_He __**never **__loved you. _

_Don't you see, Sakura? _

_Let him be. He's much better off without you, and so are you! _

I frowned at my inner thoughts. Sure, my inner was trying to cheer me up... but could those words really make me forget our... love affair?

Karin laughed heartily. She wasn't bitchy. She wasn't a snob. She was perfect... to Sasuke. But I knew she wasn't all that she implied she was. During the relationship, she was as sweet as angel, and as lovely as a bird. But if there was a break up, she would simply hunt for another man. Like the old saying, _men are simply fish in the sea_.

Sasuke was flushed with joy. Karin held on to him lovingly, as if they could never be seperated. Any other day, I would have deemed it gross and sick, but I knew what it was like being with Sasuke Uchiha. It would feel as if I didn't care what everyone thought about. Our relationship… was perfect. So… so why did this all happen?

_Because of that feeling that bothered you, everday, Sakura... _

In the middle of a passionate make out session, Sasuke finally noticed me. At first, his glazed eyes looked surprised… but then the Sharingan eyes appeared. The ones I had feared. The ones that appeared in my dream every night, enveloping me in a world of darkness.

"Sakura…" he hissed. He stared at me with hatred. Oh, if the looks could kill…

Karin noticed that Sasuke's attention wasn't directed to her, and then her horrid eyes spied me as well.

"The Haruno girl." she muttered under her breath, so softly that I almost missed it. Then, slowly, she walked up to me.

"Sakura-chan! What are you doing here in this lonely night?" she asked, mocking concern.

I looked up briefly at her, and chose my words carefully.

"Just relaxing, you know? ANBU missions aren't all cream and cake."

"Why… of course. You're an ANBU. You need lots of relaxation for your missions."

The mockery and hatred in her voice was obvious. So obvious that I wanted to punch her, right then and there. Karin had always envied me for becoming an ANBU. Trying to prove in every way that she was perfect, she wanted to beat everyone everything. Except for Sasuke, of course.

"Sasuke, I thought we established that you wouldn't bother me. Karin's in the agreement as well."

"Hn."

I couldn't take the sight anymore, and I decided to leave. I wasn't in the mood to fight back today.

As soon as I had reached the entrance of the park, I risked a glance back at Karin and Sasuke. Still making out.

A chilling breeze of wind swept across me, grazing and biting my visible skin. I uttered profanities at myself for wearing flip flops, dark green shorts, and a light green hoodie. It left an enormous chill in my spine, reminding me of Sasuke when he used to kiss me with those astounding lips...

_Stop, Sakura. We vowed we'd never think about it again, right?_

I laughed weakly as my Inner tried to console me like an adult. As I had grown over the years, she had, too.

I prepared myself a cup of ramen on the kitchen counter, back at home. I guess Naruto's habit of unhealthy food rubbed on me, as well. I slurped the noodles and trudged up the stairs, skipping over a step with many cracks (from beating Naruto up for being perverted).

As I laid on my bed, I embraced the moonlight, basking in its cool sensation. The aftereffects from today's mission coincedentally decided to erupt on me now. I only managed one though to register in my brain before I could no longer hold any more conciousness.

_Sasuke, we weren't meant to be. You were only a womanizer and you never truly loved me. _

* * *

**_To be Continued :)_**

**A/N: **Reviews make me happy. :)


	2. The Mission

Eyes Closed, Mind Free

**of Romance, and Angst T**

**A Naruto Story**

**Summary: **Sakura has been living alone in the shadows since she felt that somehow, her and Sasuke's relationship had no meaning. And ever since, Sasuke has hated her with pure venom.. for what?

**Disclaimer: **Naruto, in all rights, belongs to Masashi Kimoto and its other respectful owners.

**Note to Readers: **This is my very first Naruto story. Reading many of these stories on deeply inspired me to write some of my own. I welcome logical criticism, and compliments. Note that the characters (especially Sasuke) might be OOC at times to fit my story.

Here are some notes to help you understand who's saying what.

_I like ice cream _- refers to one's thoughts, and in Sakura's case, her Inner.

I like ice cream - narration or speech.

A line above and under _I like ice cream - _a flashback.

Enjoy!

* * *

I took my daily morning jog on the Forest of Death for the Chuunin examinations, dodging easy traps with kunai, senbon, and shuriken.

I leaned on the bridge - the bridge that brought back so many memories of my younger genin and chunin days. Like any other spring, the river made a trickling sound that I had grown accustomed to while waiting for Kakashi - sensei to arrive.

_Speak of the devil! _

With a pop, clouds of smoke erupted, until it vanished, revealing a young looking man with stunning silver hair and lower portion of his face covered in a mask.

"Hello, Sakura - san!" he said, in a singsong voice.

I raised an eyebrow. "What, did you sleep with Anko?"

Kakashi blushed crimson, and I knew I hit the jackpot. "A-anyway," he said, his face gaining more of a serious look, "duty calls. You have a mission from the Lady Hokage."

"Oh, alright." I formed a hand seal, and my vision blurred as I dissapeared from the bridge. Little did I know that while I was poofing away, Kakashi looked extremely grim after informing me of the mission.

* * *

I landed in Tsunade - sama's office just in time to see her glare angrily at Sasuke. Wait... Sasuke? I looked in his direction. He, too, was dressed in his formal ANBU clothing, obiouvsly ready for a mission. He was clutching onto his menacing-looking wolf mask. He didn't even spare a glance at me, but I knew he sensed my chakra.

"Tsunade - sama..." I started.

She held up her hand, to silence me, and I immediately fell silent.

"I have a mission... for both of you," she informed. Sasuke scowled.

_I'm going to ruin this mission if I'm with Sasuke! We can't even work together! _

"It's only an B rank mission, but I expect the most from the both of you. If you successfully complete this, it will greatly strengthen our ties with the Tea Country. As written on the scroll," - she handed a scroll to Sakura - "the Daimyou of the Tea Country is being targeted by ninja in Kika Island from the Sea Country. Neither of these countries are potentially strong, but unfortunately the Sea Country has put in a lot of effort for their ninja. The Tea Country is also the nearest to theirs, so naturally they are being targeted. As you might remember, Sakura, we are allies with the Tea Country because of their wealth, resources, and useful ports. I trust that both of you will keep this bond by protecting the Daimyou. You might have to assasinate the Sea ninja, but try not to at all costs."

"Tsunade - sama, I understand the importance of this mission, but why are Sasuke and I appointed for it?" I inquired.

"Sasuke is a strong and useful fighter. He also has the Mangekyou Sharingan, which will prove handy if the Sea ninja have any special jutsus that we could pass on to our own ninjas. And you, Sakura, are a great protector in close range, so I will need you to be next to the Daimyou at all times. It is also common knowledge that a medic nin should be in every team."

"Hn." Sasuke scoffed, hands in his pockets.

I rolled my eyes. "Hai, Tsunade - sama!"

* * *

The following morning we met at the gate of Konoha. As expected, Sasuke was earlier than me, leaning on the gates and staring at the ground.

"Let's go, Sasuke - kun," I said, trying to act normal.

"Hn."

* * *

"Come on, Tsunade baa-chan! Why do I have to be with emotionless Sai and Sasuke-obsessed Karin? I mean, even Sakura-chan or Sasukewould be better!" Naruto whined childishly.

"I think I agree with dickless, Hokage-sama," muttered Sai, with a fake smile plastered on his face.

Karin sweared under her breath, and brushed off invisible dirt from her black shorts.

A vein on Tsunade's forehead popped. The venom and fire in her eyes was enough to make anyone run for his or her mother.

"Karin has good tracking senses, like Kiba, who is on a mission. Sai is also mediocre in healing. Besides, Sasuke and Sakura are on a mission together," said Tsunade, as calmly as she could.

"WHAT! SASUKE AND SAKURA? IT SHOULD BE ME AND SASUKE!" spluttered Karin.

"THE TEME AND SAKURA-CHAN? OMGEE! THEY AREN'T GOOD TOGETHER YOU KNOW! BAD THINGS COULD HAPPEN! SAKURA-CHAN COULD DIE AND THE TEME COULD BE MOLESTED AND-"

"SHUT UP!" roared Tsunade. The glass behind her shattered into small pieces. "Don't make me appoint Sai as the captain instead of you, Naruto!"

Naruto froze, and immediately bowed down like a gentleman. "As you wish, Lady Hokage."

Tsunade smirked, and threw Karin a hateful look. "Don't think I respect you. Your childish manner will be your downfall."

Karin bowed her head, imagining the worst possible way to kill Tsunade.

* * *

I stayed a few metres behind Sasuke while we were leaping in the trees, checking for any stalkers or threats.

Suddenly, I felt an outrageous amount of pain in my right arm. A poisonous senbon! I cursed myself for not sensing the weird chakra, and coincedentally I lost my balance.

_Great. Now Sasuke's going to laugh and mock us._

Sasuke didn't even look back. "Tch. Annoying," he muttered. And left me.

I fumbled around in my ninja pouch for an antidote, and luckily I found six bottles of the antidote that could be injected.

Unlike the antidote I had used when fighting Sasori, this actually cured the poison.

I glared at the damn Uchiha throughout the whole journey.


End file.
